EJ Dionne: Why the NRA pushes ‘Stand Your Ground’

[JDPriestly]

54. Watching in courtrooms.

Spend some time in courtrooms -- domestic violence, family law, the usual criminal courts. Just watch. It is much more visible in courtrooms in some areas of LA than in others.

I've even heard some horrendous stories in Juvenile Hall. Just volunteer. Hang out. Educate yourself.

If you live in a small town in the Midwest you may not see what I have seen.

Or, alternatively, talk to some of the emergency room doctors in big city hospitals. I think that shootings on our streets and in our homes have declined in recent years along with all violent crime, but it is still awful.

My husband points out that gun violence is much less prevalent in countries like Austria, Germany, the UK, even France and Italy (where people have a reputation for flaring tempers) even though hunting is a very popular sport. People don't carry their guns to the local beer hall or winery. They know better.

People here should know better. It is part of living in a civil society. You don't need to ban guns if people don't use them unwisely. I want a gun ban in my urban area because there is nothing to hunt here but people. My neighbor who likes to hunt should have a permit to transport his gun through the city but not to carry it around openly where he can easily reach it in the city.

These SYG laws should not exist. Of course, you have a right to self-defense. But you should simply have better sense than to carry your gun with you when you head for the 7-11 on a Friday night or when you go out on Neighborhood Watch patrol in a heavily populated area. It's common sense. Please.